Archive for the ‘Houses’ Category

Aa apparent newcomer has written to ask about their many natal planets at around 20 Degrees, in response to our October 2016 suggestion that we begin working with these Degrees now, since they will be Lit Up when our Home Planet begins Her Big Reorg in the early 2020s – see https://astrobuss.wordpress.com/2016/10/20/2020-b/ for our article and their comment.

Of course, as we repeatedly point out, these Degrees continue to be Lit Up by many of our planetary Companions today. As we write, one quarter of the planets we follow are in or adjacent to this Zone, which is only one sixth of the Zodiac wide. It’s a useful question, so I’ll answer it…

Our approach is to intend to befriend the Unconscious because we Believe that the Power of the Ego is minuscule compared to the Power of the Unconscious, and because the Ego is usually Unconscious of that fact.

We also intend to work not with Qualities but with Energies and Relationships, and therefore we work mostly with what we call the “Angles,” though most astrologers would call them “Aspects.” We prefer Angles because that’s what they are in plain language – the Angular Relationship between Planets (and other astrological Hot Spots such as the Nodes).

Unfortunately there is an astrological term “Angles” as well, meaning the Ascendant, Midheaven, etc., or the major House Cusps. We can usually live with this ambiguity because we very seldom talk about Houses, since we write for the whole planet, and House positions vary with location. Folks who commonly use the astrological term “Angles” may be confused by the way we use the word, alas.

Most astrologers I know would not argue that the T-Square (a third planet halfway between two planets that Oppose one another) is one of the most problematic Angular Relationships, largely because it usually seems to indicate a Sisyphean area where Success is not possible but the Compulsion to Keep Trying is unrelenting. Consequently, the most appropriate keyword for the Ego’s Relationship to a T-Square seems to be Frustration.

We also Believe that, (1) on a Soul level, we Chose the Configurations of planets in our natal chart, because that’s what “We” (our Soul) wanted to “Work On” in the current Lifetime. Many folks have difficulty with this concept; the easy path to it lies through shifting your Identity till you find a place from which it’s True.

We often also interpret the Configurations in our natal chart as (2) the specific Earth Energies where we Chose to help the Planet Heal.

The first approach assumes that our Soul is using the Planet for its own Education, while the second approach assumes that we are in fact Cosmic Healers who came here to Help Earth Ascend. Take your pick, though as usual, I recommend Both/And rather than Either/Or.

Since our reader has Uranus T-Square to their Nodes, I have no doubt that they’re in the latter category.

As Ascension Helpers, then, our T-Squares indicate the places where our task is to suck up all the Frustration (Fear, Anger, Despair, Separation, etc) that the Planet Feels, and Transform it (we are after all nothing if not Energy Transmogrifiers) into what the Planet Prefers to Feel (Joy, Bliss, Attunement, Excitement, Unity, etc).

How do we know what the Planet Prefers to Feel? Easy. She and We are One.

Note that more or less implicit in that paragraph is that Emotions are not Personal, but more like Weather or a Virus. We Attach our Identity to an Emotion when we Associate or Merge with it, which is usually part of our Karma, or, we would suggest, because we came here to Learn and Teach how to Detach our Identity from that Emotion (look up “Poor-Sweetheart” and “Held Emotions” in the Categories list to explore further).

So, in the planets our new Friend has listed, we’d go straight to the T-Square, Uranus Square the Nodal Axis. The Egoic side of Uranus is Disruption, and the Egoic side of the Nodes is the Desire to Let Go of Karma. So we would suppose that our Friend, on the Ego side, is (or was, if he’s since Grown) often Frustrated by Attempting and Failing to Let Go of sticky Karmic Patterns, or what we often call Self-Sabotaging Archetypes.

For instance, our Friend might try over and over to walk a “straight and narrow” path, only to wake up and discover that they’ve strayed from it. Or worse, they might find that other people are repeatedly screwing them over…

Now, let’s turn this around and look at it from the Soul’s Perspective. First of all, what Uranus Disrupts is everything that Inhibits its Purpose.

Since most of us were Programmed to Receive Truth from Outside ourself rather than Inside, the Karmic Ego will be constantly Frustrated by the Uranian Disruption of our frequent Attempts to ignore our own Internal Truth in order to be Loyal to our Programming and Programmers.

Truth resides in the Heart, and it’s Different for everyone, so only by Programming someone to Trust their own Heart (Uranus) can Uranian Disruption be Loved as the Urge to Liberation that it is.

Now, again from the Soul’s Perspective, the Nodal Axis is not so much about the Desire to Let Go of Karma as it’s about a Decision over which Earthly trends to emphasize. Contrary to the usual Interpretation, Karma does not Grasp Us, We Grasp It. So all we have to do, to quote Paul, is to “Let It Be.”

The Signs will give us more specific information. Our new Friend’s South Node is in Aquarius and North Node in Leo, indicating that their Intended (Soul-level) path runs from Social to Personal Integrity. Learning to Love themselves Unconditionally, for instance.

Meanwhile, Uranus is in Scorpio, which is Fearless and Relentless. So our Friend is likely to be Driven to stop at Nothing in their Effort to Learn and Teach Unconditional Self-Love.

Which is Fantastic! Now, what if the Ego and Programming still get in the way and continue to Sabotage us with Downers? (Which may never actually go away, just become more quickly seen through.) Well, Reframing help a whole lot…

A T-Square Feels Like the Compulsive need to Achieve greater Perfection around some Goal. In this Uranus-in-Scorpio case, that would be Permanent Soul Contact. Or, if the Soul is Dismissed, then something like an Irrepressible Urge to Disrupt Untruth.

But even the part about Permanent Soul Contact is the Ego and Programming speaking. If you’ve taken graduate seminars in a good program, you probably Noticed that there are no “correct” answers, there are only “interesting” questions and examination of them that is thorough and creative.

That’s where you find the T-Square – on the Soul level you’ve Intended a Lifetime where you re-examine everything over and over again, with slight variations, each time from a slightly different Perspective, so you become uniquely qualified to Teach the subject, since you’ve Experienced it from all angles, inside and out.

And of course the key to all that is Noticing that there are no “correct” answers and that your Perfectionist Quest, while essential, was not for the purpose that you earlier supposed. That’s the way our Mission (North Node) operates – we have a Shadow to Pursue, till we pounce on it and Discover that it’s just a Shadow, like Ged in Earthsea.

Once you’ve done this Reframing, Frustration will continue to try to sneak back into the driver’s seat, and that’s where Poor-Sweethearting, Tapping, and PIAVAing (look them up in the Categories list and practice them) will be useful and Powerful.

The ultimate Goal for all of us is Unconditional Self-Love, so eventually you’ll be Teaching us all. Which we eagerly anticipate!

“I would like to add my tuppence ha’penny as a Libra North Node with Saturn squaring the Nodes – working with a partner who has Venus squaring their Nodes. Firstly – I read in Patricia L Walsh’s book on past lives that she explained Jeff Green’s thinking which mystified me (his books on Pluto vol 1 and 2) – that the planet squaring the nodes means you are working both the mission and the past lives in this life – I interpret this as a dance – sometimes you need to bring forward the skills from the past, sometimes you need to concentrate on the mission.

“For me, Jan Spiller says Libra NN is about being supportive and you wouldn’t believe how incredibly difficult is has been for me to get my head around that. I have been independent and headstrong – and it has cost me relationships. I don’t regret any of it, but I had to read her chapter on the Nodes several times to really take on board the flaws as well as the skills.

“As for Uranus, when it crossed my south node 4 years ago it was very disruptive but I was tracking it and welcomed the changes which involved a new job and moving house. If my maths is right, my vacancy is 2 cancer which is something about a magic carpet and a lovely balance to responsible Saturn – and may explain why I have never ever felt terribly responsible!”

In some parts of the World, “maths” really is singular. In my take on the Mystery, we need both of our Nodes. In order to accomplish our Mission, we need the Hidden Skills that are buried beneath the Held Emotions that the South Node signifies. So in the “Hero’s Journey” we have to confront all of our worst Fears. The Heroine’s Journey adds the need to confront Tradition.

Timely movie reviews: Avi Lewis and Naomi Kline’s This Changes Everything on the Sustainability of the Livability of our Planet…

It was four Degrees off, but Ceres (Sustainability) did T-Square yesterday’s Full Moon, while it Trine-Bridges the Nodes. And have we noticed that the Nodes are T-Squared by the Pallas-Pholus-Hylonome-Quaoar Stellium? That means that apart from the Crossbow we detailed earlier, the Full Moon was also characterized by a Nodal T-Square Trine-Bridged by Ceres. When the same planet (here Ceres) is the Focus of one T-Square (the Full Moon) and Bridges a second T-Square (to the Nodes), this is a very important planet.

This is a Confidence-Builder crossing for the Initiation of the Pallas-Quaoar and Pallas-Pholus Cycles, but Hylonome Initiates Pallas tomorrow – another “coincidence,” eh? The Initiations…

“I’ve been reading about the ‘problem’ of resolving squares to the Nodal Axis. What would you feel a strategy might be to resolve my natal square from Uranus to my Nodes? I’ve often been confused – or been given confusing information about – the nature and function of my North Node in Aries in the 4th House. Some say its a Mission to become more of ‘I,’ with a strong identity. Within the realm of the 4th, which is supposedly focused on home, hearth, family and tradition, it almost appears I have my nodal axis upside down, and the North Node SHOULD be in the 10th, and vice versa. With North Node in the 4th, is my Mission to become, as Garrison Keillor put it, a bachelor Lutheran farmer in Lake Wobegone? The word and process that I reckon I’m tripping over is ‘resolve.’ Resolve what, and how?”

Yes indeed, a ton of meat here, much of it important. For instance…

Squares as “problems” that need to be “resolved”

Squares to the Nodes

Uranus

The Fourth House

Aries

SHOULDs

The North Node and our Mission

How do we pick our way through the Maze?

There’s a fair amount of astrologuese in here, which would normally be indented in normal (non-italic non-bold) type. But the astrologuese is pretty basic, and I explain it pretty well as I go, and this is a good example of how astrology is useful, and how it’s done. So we’ll leave it in “general-reader” format (bold italic); skim any parts that bore or Confuse you – or Ask questions.

Squares as “Problems”

A “Square” is formed when two planets are three Signs apart. Traditional Western Astrology regards a Square as, in so many words, a Curse. Dane Rudhyar, one of our astrological mentors, regarded a Square as huperity’s Evolutionary Edge. We consider a Square to be Mastery through Challenge. There is one sense in which a Square is a Curse – Squares involve perpetual Frustration. But we shift that by shifting our Attitude. It’s our need for Perfection that is Frustrated, so if we Identify with Perfection (or even Satisfaction), then yes, Squares are no fun. We could say that’s a Choice, but our own Identity is transparent to most of us most of the Time, so we have to bring it up into Consciousness before it becomes a Choice that the Ego makes – as opposed to a Choice that the Soul has made. Clearly “Someone” Chose to be born into a Lifetime featuring a Square, so if we postulate some sort of Consciousness superior to the Lifetime, “Soul” is as good a term as any.

Squares to the Nodes

The planets and other sensitive points (such as the Nodes) in a Square involve Expectations. In general, we’re likely to Feel a bit out of sorts when we’re Identifying with the South Node, because we’re likely to be engaged in Karmic Self-Sabotage of some sort, but likely to Feel pretty good about ourself when we’re Identifying with the North Node, since we can literally Feel the Future getting easier as we give ourselves permission to move closer to our Deepest Desires. In the normal course of Life, this is a progression. We’re Motivated by our crummy South-Node Experiences to find a lever to improve them, and we’re Motivated by our Deepest Desires simply because they dominate our Consciousness (whether we know it or not). So all of us naturally Expect ourself to be moving, on average, with detours, away from Self-Sabotage and toward indulging our Deepest Desires. A Square to the Nodes Frustrates that Expectation.

This is true of any Square. For instance, a Square from Venus to Mars will Frustrate our Desire for a Satisfying Relationship. A Square from Jupiter to Saturn will Frustrate our Desire for a Satisfying Social Life. So, why would “we” (our “Soul”) Choose to live such Frustration? Because “we” Chose to Study How to Create a Satisfying Life in regard to the nature of our Square, rather than Choosing to Enjoy a Satisfying Life in regard to the indicated arena of Life. Once we realize that our Unconscious Objective is to Study the Process involved with our Square rather than to Enjoy it, Frustration dissolves, because when we’re Studying something, every “failure” provides more information to help us understand the Process. No one ever “resolves” a Square; when we Master one level of our Study, we move on the next level of Subtlety.

Have you ever heard the axion “Those who can Do, Do; those who can’t, Teach”? It’s often meant as an insult to Teachers, but it’s not that at all. If you’re a Natural at something you can hardly Teach it, because it’s Unconscious for you – that’s what it means to be “a Natural.” If you’ve struggled to Learn something and explored all of the blind alleys that lead only to perversions or subversions of your objective, you certainly don’t Feel like a Master – but you are! And you have become the “Natural” to Teach it.

There are two steps to appreciating your Squares: Honor the Mastery that’s hidden under your lifelong Frustration, and switch from Identifying with your Frustration about never “getting it right” to Identifying with your Mastery gained from Studying all the ways there are to “get it not quite right.” So someone with a Square to their Nodes is someone who is, as Goethe put it, immer strebend, someone who können erlöst werden.

When the Zeitgeist is stable, the “Expert” is someone who knows all the right answers. When the Zeitgeist is in flux (which it sort of is these days, just a little), the Expert is someone who’s Studied all the blind alleys – the folks with Squares.

So someone with a Square to their Nodes has become a “Natural” at Teaching others how to Transcend their Karma. I wouldn’t call it a “resolution,” I’d call it something more like an “accommodation,” or an “appreciation,” but there are two steps to such a “resolution” – Honor your Mastery, and switch your Identification from Frustration to Highly Motivated Student of the Subtleties.

Uranus

Now we get to Uranus as the Squaring planet. The traditional Western astrological interpretation for Uranus is “Disruption,” because traditional Western astrology is oriented toward the Ego, the Material, and the Status Quo. Uranus Disrupts that which is no longer in Alignment with the Soul’s Path in the Lifetime. Uranus represents the Personal Unconscious, another concept that matches pretty well with the concept of “Soul.”

So as we Honor our Mastery and Identify with our Student of the Subtleties, we need to be Mindful that Soul – Uranus – will be constantly bringing us up short whenever we start to Ego-Identify with any sort of Certainty. In an undergrad course you get good grades for demonstrating your Certainty about some approximation to the “right” Answer. In a graduate seminar you get good grades by raising new Questions to challenge the established Answers. The Student of the Subtleties Teaches, but not because they know the Answers. They Teach because they know what sort of Question will move someone to their next stage of Growth.

If it’s already occurred, your Experience of when Uranus in the Sky crossed the place in your natal chart where the North Node sits, will Teach you a great deal. Meditate yourself back into those Experiences. If it hasn’t occurred yet, watch for it and Pay close Attention to the Experience.

The Fourth House

As the Zodiacal Sky is divided into twelve Signs, the Zodiacal Earth is divided into twelve Houses. They correspond to one another, but while the Signs are about Energies, the Houses are about how Energies Manifest into hard copy. The Fourth House, corresponding to Cancer or The Nurturing Mother, represents Security. The Tenth House, corresponding to Capricorn or the Industrious Father (in the gender bias of Medieval Europe, where traditional Western astrology arose), represents Community. The traditional meaning of the Tenth House is Career/Profession, but that’s a bias of the Industrial Revolution (which, recall, we’re leaving) and the introduction of Wage Slavery. In Feudal Europe (most of us, except for our alternative efforts, are returning to a form of Feudalism, as the 1% hoard the planet’s Resources and enslave the rest of us; of course many have been there all along) before Industrialism, this was Community: the Cobbler made shoes for the Cooper, and Cooper made staves for the Brewer, and the Brewer made Kraut for the Cobbler’s kids.

The South Node in the Tenth House implies that you’ve brought into this Lifetime a good deal of Self-Sabotage around Community. The Tenth and Fourth Houses are opposite sides of the same Coin; in traditional society Security depended very much on Community. So the current Life is about Learning Security. Chances are you grew up with little Security, so you may not be a “Natural” at it, based on your early Life Experiences. However, the South Node is more than just Self-Sabotage. It’s also Unconscious Skills. You brought with you into this Lifetime a carpetbag full of Skills around Community. Even as they remain Unconscious, if you look objectively at your Life, you can see how your Unconscious Skills with Community have kept you Alive and relatively Well.

The South Node is also called the Dragon’s Tail. Our Hidden South-Node Skills are symbolized by Smaug’s Treasure; Smaug is the Self-Sabotage that we need to “slay” (actually, befriend) in order to recover the Skills we developed in “Past Lives.” We can also think of Smaug as the Veil that prevents us from reaching into the Zero Point Field (aka Akashic Records) to recover any Skill we need. In modern biology, the direct connection between our Mitochondria and the ZPF is blocked by Held Emotions and/or stored Toxic Substances. In the standard Hero’s Journey, we need to stand, in our fully Grounded Presence, face to face with our Greatest Fears, our “Past Deaths” so to speak, in order to overcome our Upper Limits or Self-Sabotage.

If my South Node were in the Tenth House, I’d sit in Meditation while evoking every Fear, or other Negative Energy, that I hold around Community. Will my Community be there for me when I’m on the Edge of Survival? Where do I Feel that in my Body? Can I Embrace it Lovingly? “You poor Sweetheart, you really feel Abandoned, don’t you.” – or whatever parallel Empathy is appropriate. I’d stretch myself a little bit around Community; maybe go to a Meetup of some sort, and then afterwards Sit with all of the Feelings that arose before, during, and after. We also may need to focus on Cleansing toxins out of the Body. In our South Node we chronically underestimate ourself, as we Focus more on the Sabotage and seldom appreciate our Natural Skills.

You can also PIAVA Security; Imagine how it will Feel in your Body when you are completely Secure, and rehearse that Feeling frequently. Work on your Discernment of Insecurity in any form. Do you instantly recognize Anxiety as an Emotion when it arises, and Empathize/Embrace it on the Emotional level, or do you focus on the intellectual noise that Anxiety creates? Security for you is a Choice. Every day when you wake up, the first thing you want to do is PIAVA that you bring Insecurity fully into Consciousness. You can’t Choose Security while Insecurity is Unconscious.

Aries

Then there’s Aries. South Node in Libra implies Self-Sabotage and Unconscious Skills around your relationship to Other. If we are All One, who the Devil is Other? If we’re each the Center of our own Universe, then Other is on the Periphery. Go into Trance and have a look at how that is, objectively. What’s the nature of the Attachment between you at the Center and Other at the Periphery? Are you facing one another, or facing away from one another? How far away? Mutually Supportive, or adversarial? Or ambivalent? Are there Pitbulls between you, or Kittens? Are you holding hands? Arms crossed? Akimbo? What’s the Feeling? Play with it, move the players around on the stage, add or remove props, till it Feels more comfortable and comforting. Do that whenever you feel the need.

Aries is the “dumbbell” of the Zodiac, as it brings with it zero Experience on the Planet. It’s driven by Spirit. Ask Aries what it’s up to, and if you get an honest answer it’ll be “I don’t know. It’s all an experiment.” If it’s an Experienced Aries, “Ask me in five years” will follow. Aries starts things, It’s not in charge of finishing anything. In retrospect, if Aries Trusted themselves and started what their Intuition told them to start, and didn’t let any Unbelievers (including their own Shoulds) talk them out of it, the Inventions of Aries will be remarkable. But they’re of the Future, they make no sense in the context of the Present. With North Node in Aries you’re flying blind. Did you Trust your Instinct yesterday? Then you’re on the right track. There will be no confirmatory email. It’s just Trust your Guidance. That’s it. Doesn’t matter whether it Feels right – that’s just Emotional noise. There will be a very subtle nod of approval from the Soul when you follow your Guidance, but easily drowned out by the much louder Emotions.

North Node in Aries in the Fourth House: your Guidance is your Security. If you try to steer using your Emotions, or second-guess your Guidance intellectually, or devolve into Certainty, go directly to jail, do not pass Go, do not collect $200. Of course your Deepest Desires are your own, but once you work your way through the pretenders to that throne, you may find that your Deepest Desire of All is to Trust Your Guidance. Not Faith in your “Self,” Faith in your Guidance. If you Identify with your Guidance, you’ll resist Change. You want to Witness your Guidance. You get there by Discerning any Resistance to that and Loving it to death. “You poor Sweetheart, Trust is Hard, isn’t it.”

SHOULDs

Of course our SHOULDs are mere intellectual noise. Any semblance of Should must be recognized immediately as Captain Farrell, a diversion from the true path. Ask who’s SHOULDing on you, see if you can develop a dialog with them. If it’s you, how old are you? What were you Feeling at that age – ie, what are they Feeling now as they’re SHOULDing you? Empathize with them, see what their positive intentions for you are, and see if you can get them to Support what you Want by Supporting what they Want. Make friends with them; once you negotiate Win-Win, they’ll be a strong part of your Guidance.

If it’s someone else, who? What is it they want for you? Even if their intentions are good, you need to Mirror them. You don’t need them running your Life any more.

In this case, where you think the North Node SHOULD be up in Libra, in the outgoing section of the chart, you can probably blame your grade-school teachers. Schoolteachers wouldn’t be teachers if they weren’t Extroverts. Extroverts have no understanding whatsoever for Introverts. They believe Introversion is a sickness, or a regressive gene that needs to be overcome, and they made that unequivocally clear to us when they had Power Over us. When an Extrovert gets worn down, they recover their élan by being with Other People. When an Introvert gets worn down, they recover with Solitude. We’re all some of each, but usually one or the other dominates. Which for you? The Fourth House is deep inside us, some say deepest inside us. You may need to Honor your Introvert here.

The North Node and our Mission

So no, no bachelor Lutheran farmer in Lake Wobegone for you. Your children may be below average. That would be constraining the Future, and Aries will rebel at the next crossroad, of which there will be many. When Aries rebels, it will take you on a Heuristic detour. Instead of moving forward in leaps and bounds, you’ll be tangled up in a remedial class in the briar patch. If you Pay Attention to the lesson plan, you can get back to the High Road quickly.

When you’re tempted to follow your Emotions, or Believe your mental symphonies, and especially if you feel Certain about something, stop and Ask for Guidance. Not Guidance for next week, Guidance for the next hour. One step at a time. That’s how Aries works. So yes, a stronger “I,” but certainly not as in Certainty. A stronger “I” as in constant and consistent Surrender of Control to your Guidance, constantly and Lovingly watchful for signs of Ego wanting to take credit for your many successes. “You poor Sweetheart, you really wanted to take credit for that, didn’t you.”

How do we pick our way through the Maze?

Of course, your Nodal T-Square is only one element in your chart. There are many others, and they all connect to one another. For instance, what if dwarf planet Eris was near your North Node and dwarf planet Quaoar near your South Node? Then Quaoar would Channel all manner of critical Survival Wisdom about Other and Community, while Eris would be constantly throwing Golden Apples (Revelation of what’s being Denied) into the ring. So you’d have to Learn how to phrase your Golden Apples so as not to alienate their recipient. Listen to a recording of one of Byron Katie’s sessions if you ever get the chance. When she reads someone else, it sounds terribly Abusive. But the person she’s reading is all smiles and nods, appreciating the Mirroring of their own Self-Abuse and the confirmation of their already Knowing how to escape into Self-Support. It sounds Abusive to a third party, but if it’s an accurate Mirror for their own pain, it’s Comfort, not Abuse.

If your South Node is in early Libra, it was profoundly affected by the recent and ongoing dance there between Makemake, Juno, Lilith, and the North Node. Your Nodes will Return to their original position every 19 or so years, and reverse their position halfway between. With the North Node currently backing into Virgo (implying breakdown of the old Ego in preparation for Rebirth into Courage), it will have recently backed over your own South Node. What was that like? Your Soul’s Path in the Present Moment (North Node in the Sky) will appear to be the opposite of your Soul’s Path in the Lifetime (the South Node in your natal chart). If you weren’t Conscious of this reversal, it could have been terribly Confusing. If you were Conscious of the reversal, it would have been terribly instructive. It could still be very instructive, in review. If it was Confusing, fabulous; Sit Lovingly with your memories of that Confusion, it was the first stage of Growth.

Finally, it’s a T-Square, so there’s a potent Vacancy lurking Opposite your Uranus. You have to Consciously supply the Energy of the Vacancy to complete the Grand Cross and bring the T-Square into Balance. Add the Degree position of one of your Nodes to the Degree position of your Uranus, then divide by two. Round up to the nearest full Degree (unless it’s x:00, in which case use Degree “x”) and look up the Sabian Symbol of that Degree. That’s how you Consciously contribute to your own Progress in the Lifetime. I think you’ll Enjoy that part. Most of the rest of our natal chart has a Life of its own, whether we’re Witnessing it or not. Our Vacancies are our opportunities to get involved with a lot of leverage.

“Transiting” means in the sky now, versus “Natal” which means when you were born. A good deal of astrology is done by studying the relationships between the Transiting planets and your Natal planets. We don’t do that here because we don’t know where your Natal planets are, unless we do a reading for you. We just work with the Transiting planets because we’re all under their spell.

A loyal reader asks, “So when a natal planet fills in a vacancy?“

Right on, that’s a Biggie!

First of all, for the rest of the World, you deliver the Energy in the Configuration, in this case the Grand Sextile. A Transiting five-planet-almost-Grand-Sextile is like everyone’s walking around starving, or walking around in the winter without a coat, and they don’t know what it’s like to eat or be warm – they know there’s something really scrumptious just out of sight, but they have no idea what it is. Imagine a movie where everybody knows something really Big is about to happen, but nobody knows what, and everybody’s running around asking everybody else what they think it might be and getting all hyped up with Expectation and literally, Lust, for something they know is so good they can taste it. But nobody knows what it is.

Then you walk in, with your Transiting-Vacany-filling Natal planet. Everybody runs to you because you exude the Energy of knowing what it is. Doesn’t matter whether you do or don’t (it’s all too multidimensional for most Perceptions anyway), you just find that suddenly everyone’s falling all over you, because you personify the plug for the Whole in the Universe. You don’t have to do anything – you’re it, it all happens without your consent or, in most cases, knowledge. You just wonder why suddenly everybody’s sucking up to you. It’d make a great Steve Martin movie.

And since it’s a Grand Sextile, you have the Midas Touch – you see everything that’s just about to fall into place, and you can give it that little Sextile Shove that converts it from Potential to Creative Grace. You can Heal, grant Wishes. You are rightly in demand, because others don’t have that Vision. Don’t take it for granted, or let it go to your head – by October somebody else will be It. Milk it for all it’s worth, the rest of us need your far-sightedness!

Second of all, for the “Native” (you, the one with the Natal planet in the Vacancy), it puts a huge emphasis on that planet, like it’s the Star of a really big Show in Las Vegas. In the case of a Grand Sextile, it’s a huge blessing descending on whatever that planet means in your Natal chart. Suppose it was a planet in the Eighth House, for instance. The Eighth House is about Power. With an Eighth-House planet lit up like a skyrocket, people will be hanging on your every word, looking for any little way that a little of all that Power might rub off on them. You know the way it was in high school, where everybody tried to elbow their way into the good graces of the ones with the Power. In high school that was the cheerleaders and quarterbacks.

Just for review, Power is the same word as Politics and Ego. Most of us work with good old “Office Politics,” the grown-up version of high school, in one way or another. For some people, it goes to their head, either positively or negatively. They think of their role in the organization as King or Queen, or Jester or Serf or Maid, or the one with the Golden Apple. We always have to balance our revulsion for the Politics with whatever gain we can eke out from rubbing elbows with Power. Most folks admire a Big Ego, and some folks are pretty good at helping to polish it. Folks say they’re disgusted by Big Egos, but watch how they behave around one.

Watch to see how your own Ego reacts this month, as you encounter folks who want to hobnob in case a crumb of Power falls their way, and folks who are inexplicably bitter because they resent your ease with Power. Not that Power is something you’re necessarily familiar with. Maybe this huge Blessing will be about your coming into Consciousness about Power. Just because you have it doesn’t mean you know you have it. And don’t forget that Power is changing – the Olde Male model of Power is waning. Lilith/Eris Power is replacing it – Standing Firm to Protect the Innocent. Unwavering because you’re Standing in Truth.

And don’t throw away the fruits! You’re likely to be blessed with new Responsibilities and/or Authority and/or Compensation. Politics is a two-way street. With a Natal planet in the Eighth you’re no rookie, but those who dole out the Power aren’t either. Don’t take Responsibility without Authority and Compensation; that’s always their first offer. It’s a test of your own Power, to see whether you’re willing to Stand Firm for yourself. Ever wonder why there are so many mismatches between Responsibility, Authority, and Compensation in any organization? It’s because nobody every gives Power; it’s always taken.

Just to pick a planet at random, for an example, suppose your Natal Vacancy-Filler was Pluto. Whoa, Pluto in the Eighth! You live and breathe Power! And now it completes a Transiting Grand Sextile! Are you thinking of running for Governor? There’s a Huge Gift here! And just to embellish our imaginary Natal chart, suppose Pluto was Conjunct your Natal Sun. Wouldn’t that be a stunner! With Sun-Pluto you wouldn’t be Living your Life, rather Your Life would be Living You. You’d be left running to try to catch up with it. If you were in Resistance to that, it’d be a living Hell. You just have to put your canoe in and let it go. You can steer – Pluto is Transformation as well as Inevitability, but it’s not you that decides where you’re heading.

So maybe the Huge Gift here is that you finally stop Resisting, and let Power take you where it will. Like Don Juan compared to Castaneda. Jumping on your Ally’s back and hanging on for the ride!

“Sometimes you can trip out so far that you never get back to know that you’ve left,” as Kesey put it. Why not?

I mean, what is there to lose? Your sense of Control is only imaginary anyway. It’s an outstanding chart. Nothing in it to Fear except, as Winnie said, Fear itself. Or was it FDR. I know, it takes your Breath away, but since the decisions aren’t really yours to make, there are no wrong choices. Totally benevolent, just fast-paced. Hard to relax when you’re always out of Breath, but that’s your task. Tap on it. The World needs you to stop hiding your Light under the bushel. The World needs your Power in a bigger arena, and it’s likely to fall out of the sky into your kitchen. Go for it! Easy for me to say, but we need you! We need ALL of us to stop hiding!